Tink Meets Thomas
by StellarDust2K
Summary: Near the end of "Great Fairy Rescue" Tinker Bell hears a train whistle. I think she should see a train - but not just any train - it's got to be Thomas the Tank Engine!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I acknowledge that Thomas the Tank Engine & associated content are owned by Egmont UK and Gullane (Thomas) Ltd./HiT Entertainment/Mattel. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

Author's Note: It's my 10th TBell story! Yay! I wanted to try something different for number 10, so it's a cross-over. I'll try to stay true to both fandoms.

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* * *

**Tink Meets Thomas** - Chapter 1 - An Excursion to Sodor

Jenken stood waiting alone on the Knapford station platform with his small overnight bag. While other children his age were out playing on a Saturday morning in May, he preferred helping out on his grandfather's dairy farm near Ffarquhar. There were always fun things to see and do on a farm. He heard an approaching "Peep-peep!" and looked to see Thomas and his coaches Annie & Clarabel rolling into the station.

They slowed to a halt, and Thomas' driver hopped out. "Morning, Jenken." he called.

"Morning, Mr. Walker" Jenken returned. He looked at Walker hopefully, "May I ride with you...?"

"Not today, Jenken." He watched as porters opened Carabel's baggage compartment and began loading goods for a country general store. "My fireman is ill today, so I'm doing double-duty... treble-duty!" he corrected himself, "It's the guard's day off. I'll be too busy to keep an eye on you. Perhaps next time." He walked down the platform to supervise the loading of the cartons and packages.

Jenken was slightly disappointed as he picked up his bag. Riding on the footplate with the driver and fireman was always a thrill. He'd been making the Saturday morning trip to grandfather's farm by himself for a couple of years now, and returning on Sunday evenings. Often he was the only passenger on the train, so Walker and his fireman sometimes invited him to ride in the control cabin with them. They even let him shovel coal and blow Thomas' whistle.

Jenken opened the compartment door closest to the engine, stepped in and dropped his bag on the floor, then closed the door. He slid the window all the way open, and leaned out to watch the porters rolling empty trucks away and Walker securing the baggage compartment door.

Walker marched briskly back to the engine. "Mind you don't fall out." he told Jenken with a smile, "We won't be back for you." He hopped into the engine, and moments later Thomas and his 2 coaches were puffing out of the station.

* * *

Tinker Bell, a Neverland fairy, was just finishing her breakfast in Dulsie's tearoom when a friend dropped into the seat across the table from her. The friend didn't say anything, but stared at Tink with the look of a fairy holding juicy gossip.

"Hey, Prilla. What's up?" Tinker Bell asked her.

"Anything planned for today?"

"Nothing I can't put off 'til tomorrow." Tink responded.

"I've got something you'll want to see."

"Well, let's have a look." Tink was always ready for an adventure. She dropped her arm across the table toward Prilla, who took her hand, and the world spun for a moment as she felt she was being squeezed through a dandelion stem.

Every fairy in Neverland has a talent they're especially good at. Tinker Bell's was tinkering, but Prilla was unique; her talent was the ability to Apparate or Jump to other locations instantly.

* * *

The 2 fairies appeared in the rail yard outside Knapford Station. Tinker Bell regretted travelling with Prilla so soon after breakfast, but her stomach would settle shortly. "Where are we?" she asked.

"It's an island off the north-west coast of England." Prilla answered, "Beitris showed me this place. It's in Scottish fairy territory." She looked about the rail yard, as if searching for something. "Now where are the... There goes one!"

Prilla flew off, closely followed by Tinker Bell, in pursuit of a blue steam engine pulling a pair of tan coaches.

"Oh, steam trains!" Tink smiled, "I've seen them from a distance, but I've never been close to one." The summer air took on the musty odour of burnt coal & steam. As the fairies gained on the trailing coach, they could make out more details on it. "Look, someone painted a face on the back of that coach!"

Prilla giggled, but didn't say anything. She let Tink take the lead.

Tinker Bell thought Prilla's reaction was odd; like she was hiding something. They flew closer to the back of the coach and drifted to one side of the train. Tink felt the painted eyes were tracking them. She continued to glance at the eyes until she was only a few feet from the corner of the coach, where she stopped & hovered.

"Are you watching us?" Tink asked the face on the coach.

"I certainly am." answered the face, which startled Tinker Bell.

"A talking coach!" she exclaimed.

"I'm Clarabel." responded the coach, "And you're a fairy."

"Tinker Bell, and this is Prilla. How do you know about fairies?"

"I've seen your kind in the countryside, tending to the flowers and animals." Clarabel smiled. "Did you say you were a tinker?"

"Yes, that's what I do."

"Then you must meet Thomas. He's our engine." Clarabel's eyes indicated her side and farther up the train.

"I will. Nice to meet you, Clarabel." Tink & Prilla continued flying forward alongside the coach.

Tinker Bell took the opportunity to peek into the compartments as they passed each window. She hovered for a minute at the general store supplies, then proceeded past the name "Clarabel" painted on the side. The 2 fairies continued to the next coach labelled "Annie". The compartments were all empty, until they reached the most forward one.

"Whoa! A human!" Tinker Bell ducked back beside the coach quickly. Prilla, who was used to sometimes dealing with humans, peeked through the window.

"It's a boy." Prilla told Tink. "His back is to us. He won't see us." Jenken was leaning out of the opposite window, enjoying the sounds and sights of the rail trip.

The fairies continued forward, more cautiously. They heard shovelling noises from the engine's footplate, and stayed out of sight of the driver there. Once past the control cabin, Tinker Bell's love of all things mechanical took over. She swept up and down, checking out the whistle and dome on top of the boiler, and studying the motion of the wheels and linkages. She stroked her hands over the rivets and along the metalwork.

* * *

Thomas was happily chugging along his branch line without a care, when he became aware of a soft trail of touches on his side. "_What is that?_" he thought, "_A bird's feather? A leaf?_" He pondered it for a minute. "_Perhaps it's a mouse._" Presently, 2 small creatures fluttered into his view.

"Hi there! I'm Tinker Bell." greeted the first one.

"Go away, little green bird." Thomas frowned, "I'm a very busy engine, doing important work."

Tinker Bell turned a shade of pink and scowled. "We're not birds, we're fairies!"

Prilla hovered up next to Tink. "We came all the way from Neverland to meet you."

"Indeed?" Thomas felt he shouldn't be rude to anyone who had come so far... wherever Neverland was. "Well, uh, welcome to the Island of Sodor. I've never met fairies before." He studied them as they found a stable spot to hover in his wind bow-wave. They were like tiny people, but with insect wings.

"And I've never met a talking steam engine before." Tink grinned enthusiastically. "Where did you come from?"

"Hang about," Thomas glanced ahead, "Dryaw Station coming up." He began slowing and whistled "Peep-peep!" He returned to the fairies. "All of the engines on Sodor talk, and many of the coaches and trucks." Thomas rolled through the empty station and began to pick up speed again. "I was built in the summer of 1915, in Brighton Works on the south coast of England." He looked at Tinker Bell. "Where did you come from?"

"I arrived on the Island of Neverland in springtime, maybe 10 or so years before you. I'm not really sure of the year."

"Is there a railway on Neverland?" asked Thomas.

"No, there aren't very many humans."

* * *

Thomas' driver had set aside the coal shovel for the moment. His attention was on the overgrown bushes along the track. He had reported it weeks ago, but the work crews hadn't made it to the Ffarquhar Branch yet. The rails, sleepers, and ballast appeared to be fine, but Walker had an eerie feeling of trouble. He leaned far out of the cab, hanging on by one hand and one foot, to get a better view.

Suddenly Thomas pitched down, then up! Walker lost his grip on the engine, and was tossed into the bushes at the side of the track. He scrambled quickly to his feet and clambered up the embankment, but Thomas was moving faster than he could run.

Walker watched the astonished face of Jenken riding away from him as Clarabel cried "Stop, Thomas! Stop!." He tried to remember how much coal was in the engine's firebox and what the steam pressure read. Maybe the engine would run itself out of steam before the end of the line. Walker continued jogging along the track.

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	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I acknowledge that Thomas the Tank Engine & associated content are owned by Egmont UK and Gullane (Thomas) Ltd./HiT Entertainment/Mattel. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

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* * *

**Tink Meets Thomas** - Chapter 2 - Extraordinary Help

When Thomas lurched, the 2 fairies hovered clear for a moment. "What was _that_?" asked Tinker Bell.

"Oh!" cried Thomas, "Oh! Oh! I've lost my driver!"

"Just stop, then." advised Tinker Bell.

"I _can't_ stop!" Thomas teetered on the edge of panic. "Bust my buffers! I'm heading for the end of the line!" He eyed the fairies accusatorially. "This is all _your_ fault. You distracted me!"

"Hey, we had nothing to do with this." Tink parried, "You ran over something." She folded one arm across herself and examined the fingernails on her other hand. "I'm a tinker, you know. I might be able to help, if you were nice about it."

Thomas looked to her with desperation. "Yes. Please help."

"Tink, there's a boy on the train." Prilla reminded her.

Tinker Bell jumped in alarm, and the 2 fairies glided to one side of Thomas, where they saw the worried face of Jenken looking back at them. Tink flew to Thomas' control cabin with Prilla and discovered it was vacant. They scanned the collection of pipes, valves, gauges, levers and cranks with astonishment.

"Squeaks and creaks!" cried Tinker Bell. Thomas was like an industrial steam plant on wheels! "_Okay, okay._" she thought, remembering what she had read about locomotives "_There are 3 main controls for a steam engine: The regulator, which controls the steam pressure to the cylinders; the reverser, which adjusts the valve timing to the cylinders; and the brakes_." Tink flew to a prominent lever above the firebox, and began pushing.

"Yes, that's my regulator!" called Thomas.

Prilla joined Tink, but despite all the fairies' efforts, the regulator lever wouldn't budge. Tink fluttered around a larger lever on the floor, but it looked even more formidable. She guessed that the brakes lever was part of a brass block, but it also was too stiff for fairies to move.

"Everything is so big and clunky." Prilla commented over the noise of the cab.

"We need human hands to work these controls." Tink stated. She grinned at Prilla as an idea came to her. "And there's only one human on this train!" Prilla quickly realized what Tink was saying.

Thomas rushed through the empty Toryreck Station at speed, as the fairies flew out of the control cab and back to the coach called Annie. Jenken backed away nervously when they entered the first compartment window. They hovered, unsure what to do next.

"Fairies?" Jenken timidly asked.

They shook their heads "yes". It was pointless trying to talk to him as fairy voices sound like jingling bells to humans.

"Mr. Walker fell out of the engine."

They shook their heads "yes".

"You didn't do... "

They shook their heads "no". Tinker Bell pointed to the boy, then forward to the engine.

"You want me to stop the train?"

They shook their heads "yes".

"I think I can do that, but how do I get to the engine?"

Annie & Clarabel are classic compartment coaches, unlike modern corridor coaches, with no easy access between the separate rail cars or engine.

Tinker Bell turned to Prilla. "You remember that story I told you about how I got Lizzy flying?" Prilla nodded. "Well, try it with this boy. He doesn't need to actually fly, just get him off the ground... er, floor."

"Okay, Tink." Prilla smiled, knowing it would be a surprise for the boy.

"I'll be back in a couple of minutes." Tinker Bell flew out of the window and back along the train to Clarabel. It was a mild sunny day, so each of the windows was open slightly to air out the compartments. Tink flew into the baggage compartment and buzzed around the piles of general store goods stacked inside.

Cartons of tinned fruit, boxes of nails, bags of biscuits, assorted woodworking tools, packages of sweets, bolts of fabric for dressmaking... Tinker Bell fluttered here & there until she found coils of light rope. She used a wood chisel to cut the twine on one of the rope coils, then flew a couple of tight circles over the rope. The extra pixie dust she shed fell onto the rope, making it light enough for her to handle easily.

Tinker Bell grabbed the end of the rope and flew out of the window toward the front of the train. The rope, sparkling with golden pixie dust, trailed behind her like a ribbon in the wind. She flew into Thomas' control cabin and tied the rope onto a solid anchor point. Tink then followed the rope back to the compartment with Prilla and the human boy. She pulled the remaining rope inside, and tied it to an overhead baggage rack.

"Everyone ready?" Tink checked with Prilla, and noticed the boy covered in pixie dust and grinning blissfully as he floated against the ceiling like a balloon.

Prilla had done her part, now it was the boy's turn. The 2 fairies beckoned to the boy and pointed to the rope. He groped his way to the rope and window. With some effort, he struggled his way out of the window and began pulling himself hand-over-hand along the rope, but he was now so light that the wind buffeted him.

"Grab his shoulder!" Tink called to Prilla. Each of them took a shoulder and used their wings to control his motion.

* * *

The station master at Elsbridge scratched his head and frowned as he gazed west along the track. Thomas was a bit early, hadn't sounded his whistle, and wasn't slowing down. He stared in confusion as Thomas approached at speed. When the train charged through the station, he was amazed to see a boy hanging by a rope from the engine and swinging like laundry in the wind.

* * *

The Fat Controller was sipping tea at his desk, and catching up on The Railway News periodical when his telephone rang.

"Hatt." he answered.  
"Ah, yes. How is Elsbridge this morning?" he greeted the caller.  
"What's that? Thomas didn't stop?"  
"No driver?" the Fat Controller's blood pressure rose.  
"A boy swinging on a rope?"  
"Now listen - call Ffarquhar, and tell them we've got a runaway train. I'm on my way."

The Fat Controller hung up, then immediately rang the workshed supervisor.

"We've got a runaway train on the Ffarquhar Branch Line. Gather as many men as you can and get the Breakdown Train out there. I'm driving to Ffarquhar right now to assess the damage."

He hung up, gulped down the rest of his tea, grabbed his hat and trotted out of the office.

* * *

As soon as Jenken's feet touched the engine's footplate, the fairy in green flew to the regulator lever and beckoned to him. Jenken grabbed the lever as he had seen Mr. Walker do many times, and swung it over.

"Yes! That's it!" cried Thomas, who immediately began slowing.

The green fairy then flew to the brakes control, and Jenken pushed the small lever to the ON position. Thomas rolled to a halt.

"Thank you, thank you!" cried Thomas.

Jenken turned to the fairies. "What about the driver, Mr. Walker? We should go back and pick him up." The fairies jingled between themselves for a moment then nodded to Jenken.

As he had seen the driver do, Jenken moved the reverser lever on the floor to the full reverse position, released the brakes, and turned the regulator lever a bit. Thomas began chugging in reverse, and once he gained some speed, Jenken turned the regulator more and moved the reverser closer to the centre position.

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I acknowledge that Disney Fairies & associated content are owned by Walt Disney Company. I acknowledge that Thomas the Tank Engine & associated content are owned by Egmont UK and Gullane (Thomas) Ltd./HiT Entertainment/Mattel. I am not interested in profiting from this document. It is for the enjoyment of fans only.

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* * *

**Tink Meets Thomas** - Chapter 3 - What Crisis?

The Fat Controller drove as fast as he could for Ffarquhar. On arrival, he noticed all was quiet. He burst into the station master's office, panting, and demanded "Where's Thomas?"

"I don't know, sir." replied the station master, "Perhaps he's run out of steam and stopped."

"That would be a stroke of luck." The Controller searched west along the track, wondering how much walking he might have to do, when the telephone rang.

"Ffarquhar Station." answered the station master. "Yes, he's here." he looked at the Controller, then handed the phone to him.

"Hatt here." His face flushed red. "What? No, we can't have that! The Breakdown Train is on its way up the branch, he won't get far. I'm on my way back." The Controller hung up and looked to the station master. "Thomas has been hijacked by a boy, and just reversed through Elsbridge Station!" He turned and trotted out to his car.

* * *

Jenken had noticed Thomas' steam was low, and was shovelling coal into the firebox when the 2 fairies caught his attention with their jingling and pointing. Jenken dropped the shovel and leaned out of the doorway, looking toward the rear. There in the distance, was Thomas' driver jogging toward them on the track.

Jenken instantly closed off the regulator and applied the brakes. By the time Thomas squeaked to a stop, the driver was climbing the rungs into the control cab. He sat on the footplate, puffing with fatigue and mopping his face with a rag. He only spoke when he finally caught his breath.

"Jenken! How did you manage to get to the engine?"

"The fairies helped me."

"What fairies?" They were nowhere to be found.

* * *

"Well, there you go Thomas." Tinker Bell hovered with Prilla in front of the engine. "You've got your driver back, and no harm done."

"Thank you, fairies." Thomas beamed at them, "You can ride with me any time."

"We should get going before the humans spot us." Prilla suggested and Tink nodded. "It was nice to meet you Thomas." Prilla added.

"We'll visit and talk again some day." Tink waved as they fluttered away.

"So long, Tinker Bell!" called Thomas.

In no time, Thomas was under way for Ffarquhar. They rolled through the empty Elsbridge Station again, and Thomas' driver pushed more speed out of him to make up for lost time.

Meanwhile, the Fat Controller stopped at Toryreck Station to see if Thomas had returned there.

"No sir, but Thomas' driver jogged through on the tracks a while ago." declared the station master.

The Controller used the telephone to ring Elsbridge Station, and was told Thomas & driver had just passed through again. "So it's back to Ffarquhar, then!" The Controller slammed the phone down and returned to his car.

* * *

"I want to see what Thomas ran over." Tink told Prilla, so they followed the track south.

Tinker Bell & Prilla flew through Toryreck Station unobserved, and continued south. About half way to Dryaw Station they came upon a section of one rail which had a great sag in it, and the rail bed ballast beneath it was depressed.

"Look at that!" cried Tink.

"I wonder how it happened?" asked Prilla.

The question was answered by scuffling noises and dirt being flung farther down the embankment. The fairies cautiously fluttered down and hovered near a hole from which dirt was occasionally being tossed.

"Something is digging here." Prilla observed. They fluttered closer to the hole's entrance. "Hello!" called Prilla.

"Hello!" called Tink. The digging stopped. They saw only the gleam from a pair of eyes in the darkness, and heard an ominous growl. "Whoa. I'm not going in there."

"Me neither." claimed Prilla.

"We need an animal-talent."

Prilla smiled, "Coming right up!" and she vanished.

Tinker Bell continued to peer into the dark hole, but only heard heavy breathing. Prilla re-appeared a minute later with a fairy on her arm who wore a tartan skirt.

"Tinker Bell, this is Colina, an animal-talent from the Scottish fairy colony." Prilla introduced her.

"Pleased tae meet ye." Colina smiled. Tink & Prilla explained what they'd found, and that humans may soon be coming to repair the bent rail. "Aye, thes is nae place fur a badger." Colina nodded.

"A badger?" Tink echoed.

"Aye." Colina pointed. "See th' scratches in yon' tree? Badger." She turned and fluttered into the hole in the embankment.

Tink commented on Colina's apparently reckless move. "It's a good thing animal-talents have reactions even quicker than scout-talents." She was still worried for Colina's safety.

"And those big eyes..." Prilla remarked, "What animal could resist them?"

The sounds that Tink & Prilla next heard could best be described as a fight between a cat and a badger, which reached a crescendo, then tapered away. They eyed each other with concern.

Colina drifted into the light with not a scratch on her. "She's agreed tae leave thes den, if we help 'er fin' a new place tae 'bide."

"We can do that!" Prilla cried, glad to help out.

* * *

"I see. Alright, you know what to do." The Fat Controller hung up the phone and stepped out of the Ffarquhar station master's office onto the platform, where a small group waited. "It seems the Breakdown Train crew found a bent rail north of Dryaw, so Thomas must remain here until it is mended." He spoke to the engine. "Thomas, you escaped a serious accident today, but next time hold tight to your driver."

"Yes, sir." Thomas appeared quite humble. (It is a Sodor Island tradition that anything bad that happens on the rails is somehow the engines' fault.)

The Fat Controller then looked to the boy. "I still don't quite understand how you managed it Jenken, but that was a very brave thing you did."

"Thank you, sir." Jenken answered shyly.

"I suppose you'd like to be an engine driver some day." Hatt smiled at him.

"No sir. I want to be a dairy farmer like my grandfather." Jenken's grandfather studied the boy with a mixture of surprise and pride.

"Very well, then." Hatt looked a bit flustered. "If you ever want to work on the rails, come see me." He next addressed Thomas' driver. "Whenever you're short-handed, let me know. I'll shovel coal myself, if I must."

"Yes, sir." Thomas' driver glanced at the Fat Controller's large middle and knew the only one doing fireman duty in that situation would be himself. But he wasn't about to say that.

* * *

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Author's Post Notes:

I had this story entirely planned out before I discovered the existence of the story "Rabbits" in "The Railway Series number 39 - Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines". I decided to write my story anyway; there are enough differences to make mine distinct.

Thomas fans, let me know if I've got any details wrong. I realize Thomas should never run without a fireman and guard, and there are signals along the route which must be obeyed, but then I wouldn't have a story.

Running a steam engine is not a trivial job. It takes _hours_ to get one ready for operation. Check out this "Lighting up a steam loco" YouTube video: watch?v=o6uxKCYu6aQ

This YouTube video "Running around the train" shows a young woman driving a steam engine: watch?v=RUnvVD1uKWo


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